I am not a fan of sweet BBQ sauces. They have their place but they are not something I turn to that often. I very much like North Carolina BBQ sauce. This is a vinegar based sauce. I have made my own NC style sauce up for years but decided to play with my reciepe a little bit. Rather than use salt I substituted an industrial restaurant product called Beef Base that is found in many grocery stores. I buy mine from the BJs Wholesale Clubs. You can, of course use salt to your taste. The addition of bourbon adds just the right amount of sweetness to this sauce. Here is my first experimental receipe:

1.Two cups Apple Cider Vinegar

2. One teaspoon Beef Base (unconstituted beef broth powder may work but I have not tried it yet.

3. One tablespoon crushed red chili flakes

4. Half-teaspoon ground ginger powder

5. Half-teaspoon smoked paprika

6. Half-teaspoon cumin

7. One clove

7. Two shots bourbon...maybe more.

Mix all ingrediants and allow to sit, refrigerated, for a few hours before use. Adjust ingredients to suit your tastes. The longer it sits the more firey the chilis will become and the more vibrant the flavors will manifest themselves. If anyone else mixes this up I'd be interested in your comments about additional experiments as I am not certain this is the finished product yet. The flavor I am headed for is vinegary, firey and salty.

after i heat it all up and let it cool, i thought it in a used bourbon bottle that still has a splash left in it.

01-18-2011, 18:39

tgriff

Re: Experiment No.1: NC Style BBQ Sauce

i grew up in NC and this reminds me of my dad's bbq sauce, except I think he added some molasses too. i will have to ask and re-post the answer.

01-21-2011, 08:32

SMOWK

Re: Experiment No.1: NC Style BBQ Sauce

Quote:

Originally Posted by tgriff

i grew up in NC and this reminds me of my dad's bbq sauce, except I think he added some molasses too. i will have to ask and re-post the answer.

Please do. Good family recipe's are always appreciated.

01-21-2011, 10:41

unclebunk

Re: Experiment No.1: NC Style BBQ Sauce

I'm ashamed to admit I've never even had NC-style BBQ sauce before, so thanks for putting this info up for us. I'm going to whip some up this evening using the basic recipes provided and plan to put some bourbon and a dash of molasses in there too. Sounds great to me!

01-21-2011, 12:53

ratcheer

Re: Experiment No.1: NC Style BBQ Sauce

Quote:

Originally Posted by unclebunk

I'm ashamed to admit I've never even had NC-style BBQ sauce before, so thanks for putting this info up for us. I'm going to whip some up this evening using the basic recipes provided and plan to put some bourbon and a dash of molasses in there too. Sounds great to me!

Uncle Bunk, have you ever noticed that many of the world's greatest ribs come from Mississippi River cities? Chicago, St. Loius, Memphis, and New Orleans. There are great ribs in other places, too, but those cities really stand out for barbequed pork ribs.

So, try that sauce on some good Chicago ribs. I promise it will be awesome!

Tim

01-21-2011, 13:09

unclebunk

Re: Experiment No.1: NC Style BBQ Sauce

Quote:

Originally Posted by ratcheer

Uncle Bunk, have you ever noticed that many of the world's greatest ribs come from Mississippi River cities? Chicago, St. Loius, Memphis, and New Orleans. There are great ribs in other places, too, but those cities really stand out for barbequed pork ribs.

So, try that sauce on some good Chicago ribs. I promise it will be awesome!

Tim

I'm sure you're right, Tim. I can't wait to try it. I was planning on doing either ribs or pulled pork for my friends when they come over on Sunday to watch football, so they're in for a treat.

You know, I was watching Pat Neely (of Memphis BBQ fame) on his Food Network show, "Road Tasted With The Neelys," and he visited a BBQ restaurant in North Carolina and looked really surprised when he learned that their sauce was vinegar-based. How on earth he became one of the kingpins of Memphis BBQ and didn't know that is beyond me. Me, I love it all--Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, Memphis, New Orleans, Texas, etc. This NC sauce is just the next frontier!